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Tam Andersen (right) and her daughter Laurel Andersen (left) in the tomato greenhouse at Prairie Garden farm, northwest of Bon Accord, Alberta, where they are running a community supported agriculture program.Larry Wong/ Postmedia

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That’s because his certified organic farm, Sparrow’s Nest, is part of a business model that stands to benefit from COVID-19. Known as community supported agriculture (CSA), the model sees customers pay farmers upfront to guarantee their supply of vegetables throughout the season.

Community supported agriculture gains ground as local products secure food supplyBack to video

“It takes a crisis,” says Sparrow, who is celebrating 20 years of farming 20 acres of certified organic soil near Opal. “But I’m almost sold out.”

Last year, Sparrow sold 35 shares for his farm to customers who care about fresh, local, and organic. This year so far, he’s already at 40 shares, and is still taking more orders. Customers tell him they’re worried about disruptions to the supply chain caused by COVID-19.

“People are talking about food security, local food, the supply chain — the COVID-19 words of panic,” says Sparrow, who also has a booth at the Old Strathcona Farmers Market starting May 2. “It’s about time. I’ve been working so hard and people need to wake up.”

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The pandemic may be a boon for Sparrow, whose shares are competitively priced at $825 a family for 18 weeks of fresh produce starting in late June with spinach, baby lettuce, and scallions. But other market garden farmers are less enthusiastic about the current situation.

Over at Prairie Gardens and Adventure Farm near Bon Accord, owner Tam Andersen’s business is a mixture of community supported agriculture, restaurant supply and tourism. Two of those three anchors have disappeared.

With mandated restrictions on gathering, the 25,000 seasonal visitors who usually come to the farm for activities (including a petting zoo, plus strawberry and pumpkin festivals) will trickle to unprecedented lows. RGE RD is Andersen’s only restaurant client still operating and although she hopes to sell more CSA shares to make up the difference, it’s uncertain that will be enough.

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“It’s probably our most challenging year in the 35 years we’ve been growing food,” says the 58-year-old farmer.

Community supported agriculture is a concept that’s been around since the 1980s, but it’s still not well-known. COVID-19 may change that as people with the means to do so look to firm up their food supply, which will be affected by the pandemic.

“The supply chain is top of everybody’s mind, especially as you start hearing of more places that are closing down, and more stories of our traditional streams of vegetables missing the planting season, and planting less, because they don’t have access to labour.

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“And everything has changed because you have to make sure that physical distancing is at play even if you are at work in the field, which adds a new layer of complication,” says Andersen.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations points out that vulnerable people worldwide, who are already hungry, are at further risk due to the pandemic. While that particular issue feels like less of a problem in Canada, the country is immune neither from hunger, nor disruption.

FAO notes that restricted movement, exacerbated by a reluctance of farm workers to put themselves at risk, may curtail farm production everywhere. A shortage of fertilizers and veterinary medicines, plus other factors such as restaurant closures, less frequent grocery shopping and a tourism freeze may reduce demand, affecting producers, suppliers and consumers.

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At Sparrow’s Nest, temporary foreign workers from Mexico have been helping throughout the growing season for the last five years. They should be on the farm by now, but Mexico halted its side of the program temporarily. Sparrow expects two workers to arrive soon, and in the meantime, he has a volunteer from an international organic farming organization on-site to help. But his situation, and that of Andersen, is but a microcosm of what’s happening worldwide.

The upside, says Andersen, is that people are becoming more aware of their food supply, and showing more interest in farmers markets and their own backyard gardens.

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“I’m appreciating the interest in building a local food shed again and becoming literate about how our food grows and when it’s in season,” she says.

Andersen will pivot to capture some of that interest. She’s working with local chef Kathryn Joel of Get Cooking to host a virtual, outdoor cooking school and, as restrictions loosen, they’ll invite micro-crowds to the farm for tiny farm dinners and cooking classes.

“I think that will be a nice segue for people to learn to get reacquainted with what grows locally and sustainably,” she says.

Janelle Herbert of Riverbend Gardens, which has both a farmers market business and a CSA program, says her CSA sales are up 100 per cent over sales last April. One factor is that people have dropped their plans to travel this summer, and now will be home to enjoy week-after-week of fresh produce delivery.

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Still, only about one-third of Riverbend’s business is CSA clients (check the website for details and pricing) and Herbert worries about the overall viability of Alberta’s farmers markets this season. Usually, summer markets are bustling with customers, who enjoy the fresh offerings and the opportunity to socialize. Though markets are allowed to be open, customer numbers have been dramatically reduced by health officials. Also, people are worried about gathering, even at smaller markets.

“I’m hoping people will still see the farmers market as a safe place to shop and continue to go there,” says Herbert.

She feels optimistic that citizens value fresh and local enough to visit the markets, perhaps buying for more than one family to help limit crowds while still supporting farmers.

“I just feel so grateful that people are seeking out other ways to find their food. In a way, this is really challenging people to think outside their normal habits and for us, that’s been really great.

“It’s so hard right now for so many people. I’m just grateful that people have to eat.”

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